Dixon ready to shoulder workload in UConn backfield

STORRS -- There are few members of the UConn football team who are working harder this offseason than Andre Dixon.

That's good, because few of the Huskies have as much ground to make up as the running back, a senior next season.

On the field in 2008, Dixon was somewhat buried on the depth chart, watching as
Donald Brown
ran for over 2,000 yards and speedy freshman
Jordan Todman
emerged as his backup.

Off the field, he committed the second significant blunder of his career, getting arrested Dec. 2 for driving under the influence.

Dixon was also suspended for the first two games of the 2007 season after violating an unspecified team rule.

"I worked hard last year but I've been putting extra pressure on myself this time with some of the things I've been doing," Dixon said after a recent practice. "I've given my best before, but it seems like there's a little extra there."

He's battling Todman for the starting job and wants that role badly, but Dixon also wants to stay in coach
Randy Edsall
's good graces. He knows he's down to his last straw in that area.

When Dixon's last case of "bull" came around, the player was a little wary of walking into Edsall's office three days before the home finale against Pittsburgh. He thought his career might be over.

"I'm sure he was nervous when he came in to see me," Edsall said.

Edsall suspended Dixon after his December arrest, keeping him out of the Pitt game. The coach said it never crossed his mind to dismiss Dixon permanently.

"Overall, he's a good kid," Edsall said. "He's a good kid who has made some poor judgments, like all of us in our lifetime."

There isn't much doubt about Dixon's football ability. He ran for 828 yards in 2007, earning second-team all-Big East honors.

Last season, however, Dixon ran the ball only nine times for 37 yards. Meanwhile, his longtime friend and teammate, Brown, was leading the country by averaging 160.2 yards per game.

"He set the bar high for the whole Big East next year, for the nation," Dixon said. "He did some great things and opened a lot of eyes. He showed people what you can do playing ball over here at UConn."

The Huskies, who were 8-5 last season and beat Buffalo in the International Bowl, open their 2009 campaign at Ohio on Sept. 5.

They've added a new offensive coordinator in
Joe Moorhead
to jump-start their passing game and revamp the offense, but don't expect the old-school UConn ground game to disappear.

"We're never going to get away from our run game," Dixon said. "Why totally run away from it? Somebody got 2,000 yards. You can't just throw that run game away."

As close as Edsall is paying attention to his top two tailbacks this spring, he isn't obsessing over their production. Actually, the coach hopes to take a long look at two sophomores who have shown flashes of brilliance.

"We know what Jordan can do. We know what Andre can do," Edsall said.

"MeMe (Kelmetrus Wylie) and Robbie (Frey) are going to get more carries."

The Blue-White Game, UConn's annual spring scrimmage, is April 18 in East Hartford. Dixon hopes to be at the top of the depth chart at running back then and when August rolls around.

What the New Brunswick, N.J., native hopes he doesn't have to do is make another trip into the head coach's office to explain why he messed up again.